stuaet



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

H. A. STUART. PETROLEUM ENGINE 0R MOTOR.

No. 439,702. Patented Nov. 4, 1890.

- (No Model.) 2 Sheets -Sheet 2.

H. A. STUART. PETROLEUM ENGINE 0R MOTOR.

Patented Nov. 4, 1890.

UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE.

HERBERT AKROYD STUART, OF BLETOHLEY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO CHARLES RICHARD BINNEY, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

PETROLEUM ENGiNE OR MOTOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 439,702, dated November 4, 1890.

Application filed May 29, 1889. Serial No. 312,609- (No model.) 7

T at whom it may concern: or is the oil valve or measurer for deliver- Be it known that'I, HERBERT AKROYD STU- ing the oil in quantities for the proper work- ART, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, ing of the engine, and it has a chamber m, residing at BlBUlLllGY, England, have invented which is normally filled with air, preferably new and useful Improvements in Petroleum at atmospheric pressure, the said chamberbeand other Hydrocarbon Explosive Engines or ing adapted to alternately make connection Motors, of which the following is a specificawith the two passages m m as shown in Fig. t10I1- 3, which is a section of the said valve and the This invention relates to engines or motors portion of the face upon which it works drawn 1o driven by the explosion of an inflammable to an enlarged scale. The passage m commixture of the vapor of naphtha, benzoline, municates by a pipe at with a tank,in which petroleum, or other hydrocarbon and air. a supply of petroleum or other hydrocarbon The said invention comprises improved sufficient, say, for one or two days working, means for controlling the flow or supply of is stored, which tank is placed several feet I 5 petroleum or other volatile liquid for the higher than the oil-measuring valve, so that proper working of the engine or motor, imthe oil enters the valve-chamber m at apressproved means for vaporizing the volatile liqure sufficient to compress the air therein, the uid, an improved firing or igniting valve, and quantity of oil entering the said chamber beimproved mechanism for ejecting the proing in proportion to the compression of the 20 ducts of combustion from the compressionair. The passage m extends from the valvechamber. face to the induction side of the valve Z.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is n is a governor, which is driven from the a plan, partly in section, of an engine comcrank-shaft through the medium of the gearprising my improvements; Fig. 1, a detail wheels at n, the shaft 71 and the gearing m 25 of the switch-cam, and Fig. 2 is a sectional and oisacone, which is eccentrically mounted 75 side elevation of the engine. Figs. 3, 4, and on the said governor. 5 are sectional views of the vblatile-liquidp is a rod one end of which is secured to the distributing, the vaporizing, and the igniting valve m, the other end being shaped, as shown portions of the apparatus, respectively. Fig. in Fig. 2, to bear against the side of the cone 3o 6 is a view similar to Fig. 4 of a modified form 0, so that during the rotation of the said cone of vaporizer. with the governors a reciprocating movement Similar letters of reference indicate correwill be imparted to the valve 1%. A spring 19, spondlng parts in all the figures. arranged upon the rod p, serves to move the a is the bed-plate of the engine, and b is the valve outward after it has been moved inward 5' cylinder, which has the valve-chest c bolted by the cone. The speed of the governors is thereon. so regulated that no movement will be im- 01 is the working piston or trunk, which is parted to the cone in avertical direction while connected by the rod 0 to the crank-shaft f, the engine is running at its normal speed, so carrying the fiy-Wheel g and pulley 77.. that at each reciprocation of the valves asup- 40 1' is an auxiliary piston arranged at one end ply of oil will enter the chamber m from the of the cylinder, forming a compression-champassage m and thence be carried to the pasber for clearing the products of combustion sage m Should, however, the speed of the from the said chamber, the said auxiliary pisengine exceed its normallimit, the governors ton being normally kept in its innermost powill expand and lower the cone, whereby the 45 sition within the cylinder by a spring 10, 10- travel of the valve will be shortened (more or v cated in a tube 70'. less) to limit or to entirely out off the supply Z is the induction-valve, through which the of oil from the passage m The object of adliquid and air for forming the combustible mitting the oil into the chamber m in such mixture are drawn, the said valve being kept manner as to compress the air therein is for 50 to its seat by a spring Z. the purpose of causing such oil to be quickly 10c injected from the said chamber m when the latter is moved into connection with the passage m (1 is a vaporizer, which is shown in Fig. 4 drawn to an enlarged scale,and which is placed in a chamber q in the valve-chest c, which chamber is connected with the interior of the cylinder by a passage (1 This vaporizer is made of a good conducting metal, and, as shown, is surrounded by a series of troughs or cups q, into which the oil passing through the valve Z drops, the said troughs or cups being perforated to allow the passage of the oil. The said troughs or cups are also preferably loosely fitted upon the central tube q", as shown in Fig. 4, so that they maybe easily removed for cleaning or other purposes. The tube (1 is open at the bottom and provided with a partition q for causing the air to pass in a circuitous direction to the opening g, which opening communicates bya pipe (shown in dotted lines, Fig. 2) with the space above the induction-valve l.

r is a three-way cock, which is inserted in the pipe (1 and has one of its channels connected by a pipe 7* with the exhaust, so that when desired the passage through the pipe g to the space above the valve can be closed and that through the central tube of the vaporizer to the pipe r and the exhaust opened.

8 is a lamp, which, when crude or common petroleum is being used in the engine, is placed beneath the vaporizer for heating the same when first starting the engine, so that the oil delivered to the vaporizer is converted into vapor or gas. This lamp is not required, however, after the engine has been fairly started, as the heat of the combustion in the cylinder is sulficient to maintain the vaporizer at the required temperature.

tis the firing or igniting apparatus, which is shown drawn to an enlarged scale in Fig. 5, and which is placed in connection with the vaporizing-ehamber q through the passage t, a valve 15 being placed between the igniter and the vaporizer for controlling the ad mission of the inflammable mixture into the same. The valve t is operated by the lever i through the medium of the lever t, hereinafter described.

The igniter is in the form of a tube containing a roll or wound sheet 13* of this good conducting metal, which presents a large heatingsurface. This spiral is periodically subjected to the heat produced by the explosions in the cylinder, whereby it is heated sufficiently to fire the explosive mixture when it comes into contact therewitlnthe heat of the tube being maintained after the engine is set to work by the successive explosions therein. In order to prevent the vaporizer from becoming hot enough to fire the explosive mixture as it is being drawn into the cylinder I sometimes surround the same by a water-jacket.

u is the exhaust-va1ve, through which the products of combustion are discharged. This valve is normally held in its closed position by a spring a and is opened at the proper time by the lever t which bears against the under side of the same. The lever 15 is operated by the switch-cam 1;, having two grooves v 12 arranged as shown most clearly in Fig. 1, which is a development of the same. The groove 2: contains a raised cam-surface t and the groove r contains a hollow or recess 4). The end of the lever t carries a pivoted arm 1?, havinga roller t, which runs in the grooves of the cam, which grooves are arranged in a well-known manner, so that the roller will run therein alternately, the mounting of the roller upon the pivoting-arm 15 allowing the necessary lateral movement of the roller.

The operation of the apparatus hereinbcfore described is as follows: Assume the piston (Z to be in close proximity to the piston tthat is to say, in the position which it occupies immediately after the products of combustion of an explosion have been discharged. The lamp is now placed beneath the vaporizer, so that the same is heated, and the threeway cock is turned so that the fumes from the lamp pass into the exhaust. At the outward stroke of the engine asupply of oil and air is drawn through the valve land the vaporizer, (the said valve automatically opening under the influence of the vacuum produced in the cylinder,) whereby an explosive mixture is formed. On the return-stroke of the piston the mixture in the cylinder is compressed,the compression being sufficient to force back the auxiliary piston 11 to the cylinder-cover, at the sam 0 time the roller 25, which has been running in the groove r drops into the recess r, so that the lever i is operated to allow a portion of the inflammable mixture to enter the ignitingtube 15, which ignitor must, when starting the engine, be heated by a lamp placed outside the same. The inflammable mixture being ignited in the ignitor, the flame is communicated through the passage t, the vaporizingchamber q, and the passage g to the cylinder charge, whereby the piston is forced outward. By this time the roller t of the lever i has entered the groove 1) of the cam and been depressed by the projection t so that the said lever t is operated to raise the exhaust valve, whereby on the next returnstroke of the piston cl the products of combustion will be forced out of the cylinder through the passage g and the vaporizingchamber q. As the products of combustion in escaping pass through the vaporizer, the latter is heated, so that thereafter the lamp is renderedunnecessary. The three-way cock is also turned so that the air which enters above the valve Z to form the explosive mix ture passes through the pipe q" and the tube q of the vaporizer, whereby it is heated before entering the cylinder. It will be obvious that when the exhaust-valve is opened the piston i is moved inward in the compressionchamber under the action of the spring k, whereby all the products of combustion will be discharged from the cylinder..

1 Wish it understood that I do not con: fine my improvements to the precise details of construction hereinbefore described, as it is obvious that the same may be modified without departing from the nature of my in vention. For instance, I sometimes employ a vaporizer of the kind shown in Fig. 6. In this'modification the vaporizer instead of being heated directly by a flame when first starting the engine is heated by a liquid contained in a small receptacle w, the steam or other vapor generated rising into the vaporizer, the interior of which, in order to form a large heating-surface, is provided with shelves or ribs 10'. The liquid itself is heated by a lamp. After starting the engine the heat of the exhaust products is, as hereinbet'ore described, sufficient to maintain the temperature of the vaporizer.

When using a vaporizer of the kind shown in Fig. 6, the air for producing the inflammable mixture enters the cylinder without passing through the vaporizer.

Instead of. providing the vaporizer with troughs or rings, as described,l can, if de- 1. In a hydrocarbon engine or motor, the

combination, with the firing apparatus consisting of a tube t, inclosing a roll of metal, of the vaporizer, the valve t for alternately opening and closing the passage from thevaporizer to the firing apparatus, and means for actuating this valve.

2. In a hydrocarbon-engine, the described firing apparatus, consisting of the vertical tube 25, closed at its top, and its inclosed roll t*, composed of a spirally-wound sheet of good conducting material, these parts being placed in connection with the vaporizing-chamber, all substantially as set forth.

HERBERT AKROYD STUART.

Witnesses:

JOHN E. BOUSFIELD,

' Of the firm of G. F. Redfe'rn d3" 00., 4 South Street, Finsbury, London.

A. S. ALBUTT. 

